A Promise Not Kept
by TheLaikynVictoria
Summary: Upon nightmarish events, Timothy McGee must cope with the grief, and the guilt, of losing a loved one. -Oneshot- WARNING: MINOR CHARACTER DEATH. Written for NFA 'Guilt' Challenge


**_A/N Written for NFA 'Guilt' Challenge.  
My very first Challenge entry! =]  
R/R please=D  
_**

* * *

"Where are you going, Probalicious?" Tony bounded up to Tim's desk, a grin on his face that said, 'I'm in one of my moods, move or get made fun of'.  
"I'm going to Waverly to pick up Sarah and go to lunch." Tim answered with a groan as he pulled his lightweight jacket off the back of his chair.  
"Oh, Sarrrrah." Tony replied, rolling his tongue on the 'R'. Tim stopped dead in his tracks, staring Tony down eye-to-eye.  
If you really could shoot daggers from your eyes, Tony would have been dead.  
"Whoaa, down Probie." Tony stated, his hands raised in defense. "I was joking."  
"You better have been." Tim near… Growled at him. McGee walked towards the elevator, but Tony stopped him.  
"Hey McTim, you forgot your sig!" He called out. Without turning around, McGee called back, "I'm just going to lunch, Tony. What could I need my gun for?"  
Tony shrugged and sat back at his desk, unable to shake the sudden, unexplainable worry that had settled over him.

"I'm in the library, Tim." Sarah told him over the phone as he parked his car in the Waverly University parking lot. "Could you come help? I have a lot of books and could use some help getting them back to my dorm."  
"Yeah, sure." Tim replied, taking the key out of the ignition. "I'll be there in a sec."  
He hung up the phone, placing it in the inside pocket of his sports coat.  
Once he reached the library, he looked around for Sarah, finally spotting her struggling with at least 6 large books.  
He rushed over to her, "okay Ms. English Lit major, give some of those." He grabbed 4 of the books from her, careful not to drop them himself.  
"So where'd you want to go to lunch?" He asked as they made their way toward to the door. She was about to reply, when the library doors burst open, revealing a large, crazed man wielding a machine gun.  
Tim, dropping the books and in one swift motion, instinctively pushed Sarah behind him and reached for his gun.  
Fear washed over him as he realized it wasn't there,  
"Crap."  
-

"Gear up, we got a shooting on a college campus." Gibbs stated, entering the squadroom, sitting his infamous cup of coffee on his desk. "Where's McGee?"  
"Lunch with his sister." Tony replied. "Why are we needed at a school shooting?"  
"The shooter is an ex-marine." Gibbs replied, securing his sig to his belt.  
"What college is it?" Ziva asked, doing the same.  
"Waverly University." Gibbs replied, striding towards the elevator.  
Tony froze, that worry feeling from earlier coming back, full force x10.  
"What is it, Tony?" Ziva asked, confused. Gibbs turned around to face his agents, his agitation growing.  
"T-Tim was going to Waverly to get his sister." He replied, taking his cell phone out to call McGee. "He was going to pick her up and-"  
He stopped as the phone picked up.  
"Tony?" Came the tearful, whispered voice of a female.  
"Sarah?" Tony stated rather then asked. "Sarah, where's Tim?"  
"We were in the library, a-and a guy came in with a gun." She whispered. "He saw Tim's badge on his belt and hit him hard in the head."  
"Okay, stay calm." Tony told her as the team rushed into the elevator. "Police are probably already there and we're on our way."  
"Okay." She whimpered. Gunshots suddenly rang over the phone, followed by screams of terror.  
"Who is that on the phone?"  
Tony cringed at the yell as they made their way to the cars.  
"I..I don't…I-i-it's not-" Sarah's stammering was cut off by a 'clunking' noise, and then the line going dead. Tony stared at the phone as Gibbs pressed on the accelerator, sending the car speeding down the road.  
"Hurry, Boss." Tony stated worriedly.  
"I am hurrying, DiNozzo." Gibbs replied sternly.  
-

"Please, don't hurt him." Sarah pleaded, tears streaming down her face. "Please! He…He didn't do anything!"  
The gunman had his gun pointed at the unconscious McGee's head.  
"P-Please! Don't. Please." She begged, becoming stern. "The police are right outside! And NCIS is on the way, there is no way you're going to make it out of here alive if you kill someone."  
"Oh, but I already have." He grinned evilly. "Quite a few someones."

Sarah shook Tim, trying desperately to wake him up. To her relief, he started to stir.

"I already know I'm not making it out of here alive." The gunman continued, the gun still pointed at Tim. "What do you think this was for? I came to kill people. That's what I'm gonna do."  
Suddenly, someone _else_ opened fired from across the room. His intended target was obviously the original gunman, but he failed miserably.  
The bullets went astray, hitting a few bookshelves and a window.  
The original gunman turned angrily, looking for the idiot trying to play the hero. While he was turned, Sarah hurriedly helped Tim to his feet.  
"He says he's already killed people, Tim." She whispered, clutching his arm tightly. "Promise me you won't let him do anything."  
"I promise." McGee whispered back. The crazed gunman spotted the 'hero', 'locking on' so to speak as he aimed his gun at him.  
Before anyone had time to even think, he fired, 6 bullets penetrating the poor student's body. The gunman turned angrily back towards McGee and Sarah.  
"Oh, look who's awake." He once again grinned, obviously mentally unstable and probably a little high.  
"So, you're Marine?" McGee asked, spotting the USMC tattoo on his arm. "My boss is Marine."  
"The Marines screwed me over." He stated, shaking his head.  
"You know, it's only a matter of time before the police come in." McGee told him. "Think of how many times a gun's been fired. They're not going to risk any more lives."  
"I did everything, _everything, _for them!" The gunman continued, disregarding McGee's statement.  
"And they just stuck me on desk duty!"  
"I wonder why!" Sarah exclaimed sarcastically. Tim gripped her arm,  
"Sarah, stop!"  
-

"Boss, that's 9 gunshots." Tony stated anxiously. "What if-"  
"If we go in, more people could die, DiNozzo." Gibbs interrupted him. He turned to his senior field agent, seeing the worry in his features. "Anymore, and we go in."  
Tony nodded, suppressing a grin. Gibbs repeated his command into his mic, letting HRT and firing squad know. Suddenly, 3 more muffled gunshots rang through the air, and no more than 30 seconds later did 2 more ring.  
"Go in!" Gibbs yelled, rushing the door. He was followed closely by Tony and Ziva. "Move, move, move!"

They burst through the library doors, assessing the situation. They quickly found out that the shooter was lying on the ground, dead. Gibbs, Tony and Ziva pushed through the small throng of people, attempting to see what they were watching as the HRT and firing squad secured the rest of the library.  
They finally made it through, seeing just what it was that had captured everyone's attention.

McGee kneeling on the ground, tears running down his face as Sarah lay lifeless in his arms.

"_Sarah, stop!" McGee hissed.  
But it was too late.  
The gunman quickly turned the gun on Sarah, firing three times. She stumbled backwards, falling to the ground.  
Just at that moment, a student attacked the gunman from behind. Heeding the opportunity, McGee wrestled the gun away. He succeeded relatively quickly, not hesitating before sending two bullets through the man's chest. He discarded the weapon hastily and knelt at his sister's side.  
"Sarah!"He cried. Her eyes were half open as she stared up at Tim.  
"Tim-Tim, you said he wouldn't…" She mumbled, using her childhood nickname for her brother.  
"I'm so sorry, Sarah." McGee whimpered, gently drawing her up into a hug."I'm so sorry."  
The tears started streaming as he felt Sarah's last breath leave her body._

-Two Days Later-

"Why is he still here?" Ziva whispered.  
"Why did he come in at all?" Tony replied.  
They exchanged a knowing glance as Ziva headed for the elevator and Tony rose, making his way to the younger agent's desk.  
"Tim?" He said gently.

McGee didn't even glance up.  
"McGee, I-"  
"Why'd he do it, Tony?" McGee interrupted him, looking up at him.  
"Why did who do what?"  
"Why did Petty Officer Hedricks open fire at Waverly?"  
Tony sat gingerly on the side of Tim's desk.  
"He was angry and high." Tony replied. "He felt the world owed him, and he sought revenge."  
"Why Waverly though?" Tim asked, his voice quavering yet no other emotional reaction as of yet.

"It's where he went to school." Tony told him. "He wanted someplace he was familiar with."

Tony watched Tim fight back his tears for a moment before speaking up,  
"Tim, it's alright to cry."

McGee said nothing as he stared at his hands. Suddenly, he stood up. He strode out into the middle of the squadroom, pacing.  
"Just before he shot her, she asked me to not let him do anything." He told Tony. "And I told her I wouldn't."  
"Tim, it's not your-"  
"Now, I have to go my baby sister's funeral tomorrow because I let her down!" Tim exclaimed.  
"Tim!" Tony exclaimed, clamping his hands down on McGee's shoulders. "It's. Not. Your. Fault."

As if upon hearing those words, McGee's defenses crashed, as did McGee. Emotionally and physically. He sank to the ground, Tony keeping his arms around him to lessen the impact.  
"It's okay to cry, Tim." He said softly.  
And so, in the middle of the squadroom in his best friends arms, guilt-laden McGee… Wept.


End file.
